Great Lakes The Doppelrock | Great Lakes Brewing Co.

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Reviews by JamesMN:

Appearance: Opaque dark nut brown with some visible sediment throughout. Thin light brown head that is almost syrupy in appearance.

Aroma: Amber and caramel malts with a hint of brown sugar. A malt bomb to say the least (as was expected).

Taste: Chocked full of nice malt flavors. Very robust caramel, amber, hints of roasty malts, toffee, and a nutty flavor. There is a small bit of bitterness imparted from the hops which have a earthy character but are not very apparent in the overall flavor. This bottle is dated from May 2012, not sure how old that is in terms of the style. Pretty good all around. Really none of the 7.8% ABV present in the taste but I wouldn't think it was any lighter had I not known the ABV.

Mouthfeel: Above medium in body with smooth effervescence and above average drinkability.

Final Thoughts: The Doppelrock pretty much met my expectations. A very malty brew that has a lot of great flavors but is not mind-blowing. Just a good beer. Would I drink it again? Sure, I'd want to try it fresh.

More User Reviews:

Review taken from notes Spring 2012. I've been wanting to put this into my BA log for a while now. Finally getting around to it.

12 oz brown bottle with 2 guitarists shredding some sort of rock riff on a live stage. I've played guitar for probably 15 years and this label appeals to me. Poured into a standard 12 oz tall like mug.

A - deep amber reddish brown. Chestnut looking color. Head isn't large at all but did last longer than I expected and formed a tight ring of lace leaving a touch of stick here and there.

M - rich mouthfeel but surprisingly thicker than what I expected going in. GLBC always have good texture but I was worried that their thinner liquid style may not line up for a doopelrock and while its not as thick as some it still has excellent coating and texture. Very drinkable without being too rich.

O - the closest American made doppelbock to the original German versions I've ever had. I didn't see this brew in 2013, and I hope it's not completely gone. Very underrated and under appreciated doppelbock. GLBC make a lot of great ales, but I don't think any American brewery does lagers like they do. Lagers are forgotten in today's beer universe, but I'm telling you right now, this as is all GLBC lagers some of the best on the planet. If this is released again grab it and try it. It's a top notch doppelbock.

On tap at the Mellow in Greensboro.Poured a deep garnet color with a fluffy beige colored head that held well atop.Aromas were a little light with brown sugar and caramel sweetness mainly standing out.Bready with that brown sugar sweetness on the palate,the alcohol is really hidden, you would have no idea the ABV was so high.Not overly complex,quite simple reallly,but it tastes good.

It is a very nice looking beer that is very clear dark brown with ruby highlights. There is a long lasting, creamy light tan head.

It has an intensely melaniodin aroma like the thick brown crust of an artisan bread. There is moderate aromas of toast and carmel in there. No noticeable hops aroma and just a hint of plum and chocolate that rounds out the nose.

The flavor is like chewing on a thick, dark crust of a loaf of bread with the melaniodin flavor propionate and toasted flavors following right behind it. There is a moderat hop bitterness and no hops flavor with a slight hint of chocolate and plum. The alcohol give a slight warming. A clean lager profile from the yeast without any diacetyl, phenols and only the slight plum ester.

It's very smooth with a medium-full body with a moderately low carbonation. No astringency.

This is a big, rich lager with some nice dark toasty and bready characteristics.

Pours a beautiful reddish amber with one finger of light brown head and slow rising carbonation.

Smell has some of the hallmark scents of the style: dark bready notes, dried fruits (fig and raisin). Smell starts off well, but unfortunately there is an off-putting aroma that I can't quite place, maybe a combination of alcohol and slight funk?

Taste is sweet caramel malts up front, followed by dark bready notes, raisins and figs. Some apparent alcohol on this finish.

Has a nice medium mouthfeel. Feels full without being heavy.

While there are a few off notes, I thought this was a pretty sold doppelbock. However, too sweet to be outstanding.

Presentation: It was poured from a brown 12oz bottle into a mug. The label has a nice description of the beer and lists the abv. (7.8%) and has a freshness date of "06/01/11".

Appearance: The body is very dark with deep reddish highlights and is capped by a tall light tan head. The head is slow fading and it slowly settles to a light ring of slick lace at the edge of the glass. Some lacing is left on the glass at the top.

Smell: Its aroma has sweet caramel and dark fruit notes with herbal/botanical hop notes. I also get a light boozy character and a slight hint of mineral.

Taste/Palate: There is a nice solid bready and doughy malty sweetness with notes of caramel and slight hints of fruit like dates, fig and plum. This is surrounded by a big warm booziness and backed up by earthy and herbal hops bitterness. I also pick up that slight mineral edge as well. The palate is smooth, almost creamy with a firm medium to full body and medium carbonation.

Notes: Overall I feel it's a well made and very tasty Doppelbock. Its only set back is the heavy alcoholic warmth and this will probably mellow just right with a little age.

A - Pours a vibrant copper reddish brown. Two-finger head of rich, tan, thick foam slowly dissipates, leaving a surface of fine lace and pockets of larger bubbles. Held to a full-spectrum light, the beer is dark ruby red and clear, with a thin trail of carbonation rising thru the center.

S - Rich toasted, some roasted malts, with caramels and pulses of 50% milk chocolate. A hint of toffee after it warms. Also suggests very moist freshly baked chocolate-banana bread. Only complaint is the nose is rather subdued, even after warming - have to coax it out of the snifter.

T - A bit darker than the nose, but matching it. Nicely toasted/roasted malts and darker chocolates come to the forefront, but bitterness in the profile is pretty subdued - just the right amount to be able to enjoy the malts/sugars over a prolonged time without drowning in them. Noble hops deliver just enough undefined earthiness to compliment and balance the sugars while at the same time remain in their supporting role.

M - Somewhat fizzy at first, but gives way to a surface creaminess on the tongue. Moderate carbonation. Good body and well-integrated. Finish fades quickly to soft echos of sugars on the tongue. Not at all as thick as the chocolate tastes might suggest it will be, but definitely no thinness, either - just right.

O - Skip the chocolate dessert tray and make this your last course of the night. This doppelbock features rich chocolate malts with just the right balance of hops to make them delicious without being heavy or filling. Could easily enjoy several of these over post-dinner conversation without feeling like I've cleaned out a Godiva factory. Another winner from Great Lakes. BTW - while this review is based on tasting from a bottle, I remember the servings I've had both this year and last on tap as being even better. It's one of those beers where the delivery is even better than the anticipation.

Taste: Fairly sweet caramel, brown sugar and cherry, with some very light chocolate and toasted notes. Overall, a fairly complex malt profile. Some spicy, bitter noble hops at the finish, but they actually seem a little off-putting, as if the malts and hops don't quite gel.

12oz bottle outta the 4 pack. Pours a ruddy bronze, establishing a smallish white head that leaves behind some slight, sticky lacing. The aroma is warm and malty, but a little weak. The taste brings a well balanced blend of malt and hops with an enjoyably sticky finish. A credit to the style.

Pours out a sturdy brown color, average head, didn't leave much in the way of lace. Half a point bump for the awesome label. Aroma was mildly sweet, even a little surprise of chocolate, but otherwise pretty uneventful.

More chocolate in the taste, sturdy, approached an almost porter like territory, more enjoyable than the average doppelbock to me, one of my least enjoyable styles of beer. Cocoa for realz. Good smooth texture in the mouthfeel. A non stout beer that can stand on its laurels about letting the malt complexity lead the way. Good and creamy, velvet stuff. Avoids the dark fruit taste that can sometimes be a little much in the style.

I'd have another. Thanks to . . . shit, I don't remember who threw this in as an extra, but thanks!

Pours a dark amber ruby brownish red body with a light speckled khaki head. Aroma has figs/rasisins, with a touch of green apple. Big caramel malts with a nicey artisinal bread layer. Flavor is sweet upfront with the malt profile flexing it's girth, a great example of another well brewed lager from Great Lakes. A bit of herbal hops to balance things out but the booze is really well hidden. More caramel dark fruits like raisins/plums/ and some green apple tartness make up the backbone of the flavor profile. Medium bodied mouthfeel even keeled carbonation with a touch of sticky residual sugars but not cloyingly so. Overall impression is this beer will be popular across the board by both beer geeks and newbies to the craft beer realm very solid welcomed addition to Great Lakes lineup of beers.

Brewed according to the (Reinheitsgebot) Bavarian purity law of 1516. Which means this beer is only brewed with barley, hops, yeast and water.

Lite mahogany in color with amazing transparency from start to finish, This beer is clean. Starts out with a quarter inch creamy white head that's short lived. Nothing clinging here, legs try to form but can't quite stick.

Aroma of caramel, ginger, brown sugar and hops. A little lite in the nose overall and lacking in sweetness.

A hint of caramel and raisins are noticeable in the flavor but the hops just overpower the sweetness. This example lacks the full luster of a dopplebock (dark fruit, toffee and a touch of smoke).

The mouthfeel is pleasent with a good amount of carbonation. Lite to medium body, finishes dry and a little warm.

This beer is reddish-brown in color, a bit lighter than I might expect from a typical doppelbock, and pretty clear. A nice, dense light brown head is just over a finger high, maintaining its form well and leaving patches of lacing behind.
This one is malt-forward on the nose, but with a healthy dose of hops. Interestingly, more caramel is evident than the molasses and licorice I get from most, though they are present. A bit of toffee with breads and something like plum or, perhaps more accurately, tart cherry (think Bing) is in the background as well. Alcohol is also present.
The taste follows suit, but this one really reminds me more of a strong bock than a doppelbock. Breads and caramel from malts are complemented by a sturdy hops adding some floral bitterness for balance. Just a touch of dark fruits sweetness pulls through with a smoked toffee flavor peeking through also. Alcohol is fairly hot and ever present.
The mouthfeel is also perhaps more appropriate for a bock, and less robust than the big boys of the style. The body is medium. Carbonation is moderate and lends to some crispness that leads well into smoothness. The mouthfeel is good, but it should be richer, fuller and more robust with a bigger body to really compete with the best of the style.
Treating overall as drinkability, the ABV really cuts back on how much one can drink.